No matter what happens in our lives, as His children, the Lord Almighty is with us.

*

God is our refuge and strength,an ever-present help in trouble.Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give wayand the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,though its waters roar and foamand the mountains quake with their surging.

There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,the holy place where the Most High dwells.God is within her, she will not fall;God will help her at break of day.Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall;he lifts his voice, the earth melts.

My help comes from the Lord,the maker of heaven and earth.God won’t let your foot slip.Your protector won’t fall asleep on the job.No! Israel’s protectornever sleeps or rests!The Lord is your protector;the Lord is your shade right beside you.The sun won’t strike you during the day;neither will the moon at night.The Lord will protect you from all evil;God will protect your very life.The Lord will protect you on your journeys—whether going or coming—from now until forever from now.

Walking over to the train station, I crossed the tracks with my camera in hand.

Train tracks have always caught my interest, maybe because I grew up with a freight train crossing just about four houses away from mine.

As a young child, I walked over the tracks twice a day going to school.

My friends and I would put pennies on the tracks and wait for the train to come.

When the heavy weight of the engine and cargo had passed, I recall only seeing the image of Lincoln faintly in the railing—no penny left at all.

Looking at the the photo I took near the train station the other day, I thought first of the two converging tracks as they became one, allowing a train on either track to go to the same destination.

This evening, I thought of the rails another way.

What about a train that was leaving the station and coming toward me?

A choice would have to be made as to which direction to follow.

Should it travel to the right or to the left?

We all have to make such a choice about our destinations.

Jesus had this conversation with His disciples:

“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going.”

Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?”

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you really know me, you will know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”

—John 14:1-7

For all of us, there comes a time when the tracks in front of us split into two different directions.

I consciously thought of enjoying the time, taking in the reality of the moments I was being blessed with.

The sunlight was still falling on the trees in the orange grove beside my house, giving them a warm glow as they nestled in the thick green grass that had succumbed to the shadows.

Turning around, I noticed the flowering Crepe Myrtle trees in my yard, towering high with bundles of color.

A dog barked in the distance.

Gopher turtles had dug holes in the ground to shelter themselves in many places I walked.

The pink, fluffy clouds to the south looked like a lovely painting.

If I had decorated a room especially for someone, I wonder how I would feel if they entered it, but failed to notice or appreciate the decorations?

Day after day, God creates unspeakable beauty in our surroundings.

He gives it especially to us, to appreciate and enjoy.

Instead of hurrying through the hours and moments I am given, failing to notice and appreciate the creative works of His hands, I should take the time to enjoy what He has prepared with a thankful and grateful heart.

*Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.